Grading the Hawks: Individual efforts evident, but team growth still needed

Trae Young (Stats: 24.2 points per game, 11.6 assists per game, 34% 3-point FGs in 76 games. Age 26. Salary: $43 million)

This season, the Hawks tasked Young with aiding the team in the development of Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher and some of the other younger players on the team. Young leaned into it. He took Daniels and Risacher to work out with him in Oklahoma before the start of the season. He spoke up more on the court during the season, encouraging his teammates while demanding more of them throughout the year.

Young’s efficiency took a hit as he embraced the larger workload. But the Hawks became a much stronger team with his passing and quarterbacking of the offense.

The Hawks guard had moments where frustration bubbled over and it impacted the team. But on the whole, Young took a step forward in maturing into the player the franchise needs him to be. Grade: A-

Dyson Daniels (Stats: 14.1 ppg, 3 steals, 34% 3FG in 76 games. Age 22. Salary: $6.1 million)

The Hawks had a feeling that Daniels would elevate the team defensively, and the NBA’s leader in steals did just that. He helped take the team from being the fourth worst defense in the NBA to, at their best, 11th place in the league.

But the Hawks coaching staff emboldened the 22-year-old to shoot the ball, and Daniels took a major leap offensively in his increased role as a starter. Daniels more than doubled his scoring average (5.8 points per game) from the year before.

His first year as a starter with an increased role and his elevation of the Hawks defense earned him being named a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year but also Most Improved Player. Grade: A

Zaccharie Risacher (Stats: 12.6 ppg, 3.6 rebounds per game, 35.5% 3FG in 75 games. Age 20. Salary: $12.5 million)

The rookie may have started his career in the NBA on a quiet note, but by the end, he justified why he was the No. 1 overall pick. Risacher was one of the most efficient and consistent rookies in the latter half of the season.

Risacher stepped up, as the Hawks needed a player to fill the scoring voids left by the injury to Jalen Johnson and the trading away of De’Andre Hunter. Since Jan. 27, Risacher averaged 14.8 points on 51.1% shooting from the field and 41.8% shooting from 3. It garnered him back-to-back Rookie of the Month award wins and helped to put the Hawks into position for a postseason run.

But like all rookies, inexperience can rear its ugly head at inopportune times. For the Hawks this year, Risacher’s youth showed in the team’s two Play-In Tournament games.

But the Lyon, France, native, who turned 20 earlier this month, showed that he could have a place in this league for a long time. Grade: A

Jalen Johnson (Stats: 18.9 ppg, 10 rpg, 50% FG in 36 games. Age 23. Salary: $4.5 million)

The words “All-Star-like season” dominated much of the talks in the NBA earlier this season when it came to Johnson. The 23-year-old was putting up All-Star numbers and helping to lift the Hawks to the fifth seed by Dec. 30.

Johnson took strides as a playmaker for the Hawks in transition, often kicking of their plays after grabbing a rebound and going coast-to-coast. Not only did he average double-digit points and rebounds this season, but he also dished a career high in assists and therefore set himself up as one of if not the Hawks’ most important player.

But a shoulder injury sidelined Johnson for the season after 36 games. Though the Hawks recovered enough in the second half of the season, their success only forces the hypothetical question of what they could have been with Johnson. Grade: A

Mouhamed Gueye (Stats: 6 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 42.1% FG in 33 games. Age 22. Salary: $1.9 million)

The outlook of his season changed dramatically when Jalen Johnson got hurt, and Gueye, the Hawks’ second-round pick in 2023, became a starter. He spent most of the first half of the season in the G League with the College Park Skyhawks, only to be catapulted into the starting five at the end of January.

Gueye became one of the Hawks’ most important defensive players, with the team averaging 9.6 fewer points per 100 possessions with him on the court versus off. His defensive skill set really shone in the Hawks first Play-In game where he helped to hold Paolo Banchero to 4-of-13 overall shooting.

But where Gueye excelled on defense, he couldn’t quite catch a rhythm on offense. He made 50% of his long midrange jumpers but struggled at the rim, sometimes trying to force layups in traffic. He couldn’t quite find the bottom the net from 3, though he found a little more success out of the corner. Grade: B+

Onyeka Okongwu (Stats: 13.4 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 56.7% FG in 74 games. Age 24. Salary: $14 million)

This year, Hawks fans may say that Okongwu has finally arrived. The team named him its starting center in January, and after settling in, Okongwu has become a force and frequent partner of Young.

Since earning the starting role, Okongwu has averaged 15 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists over 40 games. He’s been a much more consistent presence throughout the team’s offense with his ability to find guys on backdoor cuts.

Okongwu has shown that he has can play big and handle matchups against some of the NBA’s bigger centers. The team’s size limitations often leave them floundering on the glass when Okongwu is pulled in different directions.

But the Hawks center took on the additional responsibility of being a starter and ran with it. Grade: A

BENCH

Caris LeVert (Stats: 14.9 ppg, 2.9 apg, 33.8% 3FG in 26 games. Age 30. Salary: $16.6 million)

When the Hawks acquired LeVert at the trade deadline, they needed another player that could go out and get buckets. LeVert seized that opportunity, as it allowed him to utilize his skills and instincts as a slasher that could get to the basket. Early in his tenure with the Hawks, LeVert would provide the team ample scoring in clutch games. He hit the game-winning layup in the team’s win over Grizzlies last month.

LeVert, who is a free agent this summer, gave the Hawks another quick guard who could help to contain guards on the perimeter. With the Hawks, he had a little more responsibility than he did with the Cavaliers, which is one of the top defensive teams in the NBA. But the Hawks were a much stronger team defensively with LeVert on the floor. Grade: B+

Terance Mann (Stats: 9.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 38.6% 3FG in 30 games. Age 28. Salary: $11.4 million)

Mann carved out a place for himself in the Hawks rotation, often picking up the opposing team’s best perimeter player when Daniels went to the bench. He often attacked those matchups with intensity that energized the Hawks’ second unit.

The Hawks wing sometimes injected that energy on the offensive end, sparking erasures of the double-digit deficits the team fell into. But Mann often passed up shots or overdribbled the ball, leading the team into scramble situations.

But overall, Mann gave the Hawks a positive force that could space the floor and wreak havoc on the defensive end. Grade: B

Vit Krejci (Stats: 7.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 43.7% 3FG in 57 games. Age 24. Salary: $2.2 million)

The Hawks wing has built off the progress he made at the end of last season, giving the team a key rotational piece. He continued to give the Hawks another much-needed facilitator. But his growing willingness and confidence to make 3-point attempts gave the Hawks an offensive jolt and allowed him to have a career year from deep.

Krejci had to navigate some injuries this season, including a groin strain and a fractured back. But the 24-year-old attacked his rehab to make a return, giving the Hawks some size and depth in the frontcourt. Grade: B+

Georges Niang (Stats: 12.1 ppg, 3 rpg, 41.3% 3FG in 28 games. Age 31. Salary: $8.5 million)

After the Hawks acquired him at the trade deadline, Niang wasted no time in acclimating to his new team. He gave Hawks a flurry of points off the bench, shooting just slightly below his career best of 42.5% from 3.

While Niang bolstered the Hawks offensively, he often did the opposite defensively. He got caught in blow-bys when the Hawks were looking to take advantage of his size and shooting.

But Niang stepped up to give young players insight on and off the court. He also didn’t shy away from trying to light a fire in his teammates and causing chatter online about his trash talk. Grade: B+

Clint Capela (Stats: 8.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 55.9% FG in 55 games. Age 30. Salary: $22.2 million)

The Hawks veteran began the year as the team’s incumbent starting center and began the year strong, making 57% of his overall field goals while grabbing nine rebounds per game. He also continued to give the Hawks strong defense, helping them become a top 15 defense in December and January.

But the team made the decision to shift Capela, who becomes a free agent this summer, to the bench for the first time in his career since his third year in the league. Capela continued to be a “pro’s pro,” supporting his teammates in all aspects while averaging 7.6 points and 7.3 rebounds in 14 games as a reserve.

He dealt with inconsistent availability leading up to the trade deadline and played 10 games before he was essentially shut down for the season. Grade: B+

Garrison Mathews (Stats: 7.5 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 39% 3FG in 47 games. Age 28. Salary: $2.2 million)

Mathews earned plenty of minutes early in the season as the Hawks navigated injuries within the rotation. The Hawks wing impressed the coaching staff with his hustle and ability to impact plays on both ends of the floor. He began the year making a scorching 47.2% of his shots from 3, including a 7-of-8 night in the team’s win over the Timberwolves in December.

But as guys returned to the rotation, Mathews playing time unfortunately became as streaky as his shooting. After the trade deadline, with the addition of LeVert, Mann and Niang, Mathews fell out of the rotation, playing in just four games. Grade: B-

Larry Nance Jr. (Stats: 8.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 44.7% 3FG in 24 games. Age 32. Salary: $11.2 million)

When the veteran big man was healthy and available he provided the Hawks with so much versatility. He spaced the floor and gave the Hawks a strong veteran voice on the court, as well as much-needed size.

Nance played hard, and his on/off numbers don’t tell the full story of his importance to the Hawks when he was healthy.

Sadly, freak injuries, including a fractured finger and fractured right medial femoral condyle, held him out for much of the season. Grade: B

Dominick Barlow (Stats: 4.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 53.1% FG in 35 games. Age 21. Salary: $491,887)

Barlow began the season on a two-way contract before the team signed him to a multiyear deal in March. The Hawks needed the 21-year-old big particularly down the stretch of the season with injuries to Capela and Nance.

Though Barlow showed several flashes in that time, he couldn’t quite settle, particularly on the defensive end. He did do a solid job of holding opponents off the offensive glass, allowing opponents to turn only 2.7% of their misses into offensive rebounds.

The Hawks, though, will need Barlow to take a step forward next season, especially with the Capela and Nance contracts expiring this summer at the end of the league year. Grade: C

Kobe Bufkin (Stats: 5.3 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 21.1% 3FG in 10 games. Age 21. Salary: $4.3 million)

This season did not seem meant to be for the Hawks second-year guard, who already missed much of his rookie season with a fracture thumb and foot injury. A shoulder injury limited Bufkin to 10 games before the Hawks shut him down in December. He had surgery to address shoulder instability in January, and the team expects him to make a full recovery for the 2025-26 season. Grade: Incomplete

TWO-WAY CONTRACTS

Keaton Wallace (Stats: 5.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 32.9% 3FG in 31 games. Age 25. Salary: N/A)

When Wallace began the season, he expected to spend most of it in the G League with the Skyhawks. While Wallace did play a lot of minutes with the Skyhawks, he became a significant piece in the Hawks rotation early in the season. He played a key role in the Hawks first NBA Cup tournament win, helping the team to advance out of Group Play with a 3-1 record.

Wallace couldn’t quite crack the rotation when injuries in the backcourt decreased. Considering the unexpected expansion of his role, career night in Chicago and triple-double in the Hawks finale, Wallace gave the team a solid effort this season. Grade: B

Daeqwon Plowden (Stats: 7.2 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 52.9% 3FG in 6 games. Age 26. Salary: N/A)

Hawks fans may remember Plowden’s debut with the team on Jan. 15 for a long time. The wing shot 7-of-8 overall and 5-of-6 from 3 to help the Hawks to win over a pretty healthy Bulls team without four key rotational players. But Plowden has averaged only nine minutes per game since then and played most of this season with the Skyhawks, where he excelled. It would be unreasonable to try to grade his year with the Hawks on just six games. Grade: Incomplete

Jacob Toppin (Stats: N/A. Age 24. Salary: N/A)

The Hawks signed Toppin to a two-way contract in late March, and the forward spent pretty much of his time with the Skyhawks. In the eight games with the Skyhawks, Toppin posted strong numbers, which translated to a strong debut with the Hawks in the final game of the regular season. But it would be unfair to grade Toppin’s tenure with the Hawks based on such a small sample size. Grade: Incomplete

COACHING

Quin Snyder (40-42, including NBA Cup semifinals appearance)

When looking at the Hawks at the start of the season, there probably wasn’t a lot of expectation. But Snyder coached a roster full of youth and plagued with injuries into a team that could compete with the best in the league.

The Hawks were projected to win just 36 games after they finished last season with that number and a loss in the first Play-In game.

But Snyder emboldened his roster, instilling confidence up and down the lineup and positioning players to succeed. Sometimes he could let lineups that did not net enough points or allowed opposing teams extended runs play a little too long.

Overall, though, Snyder and his staff shepherded the development of their young cornerstones and helped to build a foundation the Hawks can capitalize on next year. Grade: A-

FRONT OFFICE

Before Monday, one could say the Hawks did a solid job this season of accomplishing the goal they set at the start of the season. They wanted to grow the team’s culture and develop internally, all while competing.

But goals change, and after the Hawks’ exit from the postseason in their loss to the Heat last Friday, they moved in a new direction.

Instead of lingering on an administration that provided results they weren’t happy with, team ownership opted to fire Landry Fields, promote assistant general manager Onsi Saleh and launch a search for a new president of basketball operations.

Still, the Hawks front office was able to move on from a backcourt partnership that was not working and added a couple of foundational pieces in Daniels and Risacher. They netted some needed veteran voices at the trade deadline and built a team that finished with four more wins than the preseason projection. Grade: A-